Safety » Stop, Drop and Blog

Do Kids Need Swimming Lessons?

Jun 292010

Up until this weekend, BigBrother was timid in the pool. He would cling to me for most of the time spent in my parent’s pool. Eventually he would find enough nerve to jump off the side into someone’s waiting arms, and on a rare occasion, he might swim with swimmies (you know, floaties) and a pool noodle. But none of that “on his own” business. Until he saw his sister swimming like a fish this past weekend.

Now?

Swimming

LittleBrother was always a fish. He would “swim” with his swimmies on, occasionally asking for help when he got tired. He wasn’t really a fan of putting his face in the water though and would sometimes panic if he thought you weren’t paying attention (which we always were).

Grin

I missed swimming lesson sign ups for all classes in our area. Though LittleBrother is technically too young, I have been informed by parents who are better than me that BigBrother should have already had two years of said classes under his swimming trunk elastic. I have failed yet again.

But do kids need swimming lessons?

I ask this not knowing the answer. I’m all about safety. I am 100% for children learning the importance of safety around water, how to properly swim and to learn to love and respect the water. But classroom settings, even in a pool, stress BigBrother out. In fact, the thought of swimming class stresses me out and both of my sons play heavily on how I react. Will swimming lessons be beneficial? Are they an absolute necessity?

I understand that my kids are still using floating devices and are therefore not technically swimming. I would never leave them unattended in their swimming devices just like I would never leave them alone without those helpful bits of floatie stuff. I’m not asking for permission to do so. What I’m wondering is if I have to shell out money for something I can technically teach the kids on my own or, really, that they can learn while in the pool with others.

This isn’t like the issue of organized sports. I believe they learn all kinds of things in a setting like t-ball (for which we have a year end pizza party tonight) or soccer (which went incredibly well this past winter). I think things like basketball camp can teach kids great skills that they can use in a team setting and even in real life. And, really, I’m not the one who should be teaching either of these kids how to properly handle a soccer ball with their feet seeing as how I never played. But I can swim and I can swim well. Can I teach them? Should I teach them? Will they learn from someone else better?

In short: did your kids take swimming lessons or did you teach them or a combination of the two or neither or… please chime in on my inner dialogue, okay?

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[This is the last week to win the $100 Visa gift card!]
[This blog is nominated for two BlogLuxe awards (Eye Candy & Blog You Learned the Most From) while Chronicles of Munchkin Land is nominated for Most Inspiring. Vote if you feel so inclined.]

Official Warning: Dance Parties are Dangerous!

Parenting 9 Responses »

Mar 262010

Last night after supper we decided not to play Mario Kart and, instead, have an After Supper Dance Party. We do this on occasion when we’re all feeling wiggly and jumpy and in the need to burn off a little energy. It’s one of the ways that we, as parents, trick our children into making themselves tired before bed. Very sneaky, I know.

We turn on the 90′s on 9 on Sirius Satellite radio and begin busting our collective move. There were also some bits of horseplay thrown in which I, the Safety Conscious Mom, may or may not have participated. Okay, okay. I did some under chin tickling on both boys because it creates the most wonderful set of giggles ever heard. But otherwise I danced and reminded my three boys (count ‘em, it’s three) to be careful.

FireDad was spinning in circles with BigBrother in the air. It’s not an unusual occurrence, even in our house. Kids love to spin. Dads love to spin their kids. I’m sure that somewhere else in the world another Dad was spinning his kid and their house, like ours, was filled with giggles, laughter and whines of the other child saying, “Me now! It’s my turn, Daddy!”

And then it happened.

The sound of giggling was replaced with a thud. BigBrother had wiggled mid-air and FireDad did what every child and every mother has to believe is impossible: he dropped BigBrother. Thankfully we have carpet in the living room where our After Supper Dance Party is held. But, really, that didn’t matter too much. As I rushed to the Scene of the Accident, the pattern of the carpet was starting to show little pin-pricks of blood on his forehead.

THE PATTERN OF THE CARPET. ON HIS FOREHEAD.

I ran for ice and a rag. BigBrother expressed his outrageous anger with FireDad and clung to me. Then he yelled at me because I was freezing him to death. He sobbed. And yelled at his Daddy. And sobbed. And we kept calmly talking to him, helping him to remember the process of breathing in between his sobs and yells. Eventually he calmed down. And began laughing.

So, I took a picture.

BooBoo

Gosh, he’s cute.

I didn’t take this picture so that we could laugh about this story with our potential grandchildren someday. (Well, that was one reason.) I took this picture to tell the Internet that After Supper Dance Parties are DANGEROUS and SHOULD BE AVOIDED AT ALL COSTS. I mean, isn’t that what would happen if some big government agency got hold of this story? Bath toys and slings are bad, and now you can add dance parties, spinning in circles and maybe even laughter to the list. Or, you could, perhaps, use a little common sense, and, maybe, not drop your child on his face while participating in said dance party events. Or, as my parents learned in the 80′s, if you’re walking across the ice with your little girl on your shoulders so her feet don’t get wet, it’s best not to be wearing slippery cowboy boots. Recently, Dee experienced a scary parent moment, too. Lessons are learned everyday.

BigBrother is fine. He went to school today, some carpet pattern still visible on his head. He was his noisy, bouncy, too-happy-for-morning self while getting ready for school. My next thought is how we’re having pictures with the Easter Bunny taken on Tuesday and how this accident will forever be immortalized with the big scary rabbit. It’s almost funny.

In short, no more spinning on hard surfaces. Today. Maybe tomorrow.

Sparkles the Fire Safety Dog + a Giveaway

Reviews 21 Responses »

Oct 092009

I’ve been talking about fire safety in different ways all week. Fire Prevention Week shouldn’t be the only time you talk about fire safety, of course. Using the storybooks that I mentioned and others like them is a good way to keep fire safety part of your year round discussion. A book specifically dedicated to fire safety is also a good way to make sure your family knows what to do if a fire emergency occurs at your house.

Enter: Sparkles the Fire Safety Dog by Firefighter Dayna Hilton.

I “met” Firefighter Dayna and Sparkles online shortly after Stop, Drop and Blog was launched. Hailing from Arkansas, they teach their local children about fire safety through their fire department. They don’t stop there! If you have Sprout, the PBS channel for kids, you might have seen a mention or two (or more) about Sparkles this week. They’re serious (and fun) about spreading the message of fire safety.

That’s why they sent us their book to read. I’ll be honest; I love the book. What says firefighter more than a dalmatian on a fire truck? The pictures are bright, vivid and go with the descriptive information on the page. The book teaches children (and parents) to know the sound of their smoke alarm, how to get out of the house (go low under smoke), to have a plan and a preset meeting place outside and, which is a very important thing, not to be afraid of firefighters. One of our adult friends admits that he was afraid of firefighters when he was a kid. Not good! We need to teach our children that firefighters are our friends and that if they show up, they’re only there to help!

If your kid are like mine, they might also like the audio book which includes Sparkles’ theme song! Fun!

I just can’t stress the importance of teaching fire safety at home with your own children. Yes, your schools likely did a lesson or more on fire safety this week. Next week they’ll be on to something else. Your children need to know how to get out of your house in various ways. Your children need to know the sound of your own smoke detector. Your children need to know that you know all of this as well.

And that’s why we’re giving away two copies of Sparkles the Fire Safety Dog, the audio book, some cards with Sparkles picture and a First Alert smoke detector pack. What all is included?

Two winners will receive a copy of Sparkles the Fire Safety Dog book and audio books by Firehouse Dog Publishing. This fun and educationally sound book is autographed by Firefighter Dayna and “pawed” by Sparkles the Fire Safety Dog. To date, the book has been credited with saving the lives of two children and their families. Inspired by her work as a firefighter and by the love of her four-legged friend, Firefighter Dayna set out to create a heart-warming story about Sparkles.

Through the book, children learn the adventures of Sparkles the Fire Safety Dog while at the same time learn valuable fire safety tips, which empower them to stay fire safe in case of fire. These tips include, (a) recognizing the firefighter as a helper and a friend, (b) knowing the sound and purpose of a smoke alarm, (c) learning how to crawl low under smoke, and (d) understanding the importance of practicing a home fire drill using an escape map. Sparkles the Fire Safety Dog is based on the latest fire safety research for young children by Oklahoma State University’s Fire Protection Publications.

The winner will also receive life saving products from First Alert, including a smoke alarm, carbon monoxide alarm, Tundra™ Fire Extinguishing Spray and two-story escape ladder. Prize package value $135.00.

That’s a big prize pack! How do you enter?

1. Leave a comment on this post telling me your kids’ ages and what they know about fire safety as of yet. You may do this once.

Bonus entries:

2. Copy/paste the following in your twitter stream: Win a fire safety prize pack worth over $135 with @FireMom and @sparklestfsd: bit.ly/sU2XO …Be sure to leave a comment here in case I miss your tweet! You may do this as many times as you think your followers will tolerate!

3. Blog about this giveaway on your public blog, linking back to this post. Leave a comment here with your URL so I can be sure to find it.

Restrictions: Limited to US residents.

The giveaway will be open until October 23, 2009 at noon. The winner will be pulled via random.org and contacted via email. You will have 24 hours to respond or I will pull a new winner.

If you’ve learned anything this week on Stop, Drop & Blog I hope that it is that fire safety is both important and easy for you to teach at home. If you ever have any questions about fire safety and kids, please don’t hesitate to ask. In the meantime, best of luck in this giveaway!

(Our winners were Jennifer and Mandy. We had two Mandy-entrants. I linked to avoid confusion. They have been emailed!)

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Disclosure: I received a free copy of the book and the CD. We would have posted this giveaway without such a thing as we have been fans of Sparkles for years!

Fire Prevention Week: Utilize the Internet

FireFamily Gets Serious 2 Responses »

Oct 052009

This week is Fire Prevention Week. If you have children in some form of school, you might see them come home with papers on fire safety. You might hear that a fire truck has visited their school or that they took a walk to the local fire station. While the involvement of firefighters and fire departments in our kids’ school is beyond beneficial, the truth is that you can start at home, well before your kids head to preschool. It’s never too early to start talking about fire safety. This week I’ll be bringing you tips, book reviews and other great things about fire safety.

Today I though I would bring you some links so that you can utilize the Internet as you teach your children about the importance of fire safety. Even very young children can utilize Internet sites, whether for games, for reading or for printing coloring pages. All they need is you to help them locate the sites, work on whatever the site offers and to explain the importance of each site and safety tip. Here are some of my favorites.

1. The National Fire Prevention Week website actually has some great resources for parents and kids. Things like the Fire Safety Inspection Checklist (.pdf) and the Fire Safety Information card are great activities to complete with older children. The arcade on site provides for a fun way to bring a discussion about fire safety into your learning process. For the youngest set, a coloring page with Sparky is made available that highlights the important things to remember to prepare for and in the midst of a fire emergency.

2. Sprout, the PBS kids channel, has a great Fire Safety Week program going on right now, including on their website. This site provides more coloring pages, including a counting one, a Fireman Sam one and some others. (A fun thing on the Sprout site allows for you to upload a picture of your kids’ artwork once it has been completed for others’ viewing pleasure on the website! Cool!) There are also some videos on their Fire Safety page.

3. USFA Kids (US Fire Administration) has a great site that combines pertinent information (Home Fire Safety, Smoke Alarms, and Escaping from a Fire) with some games (Crossword Puzzles, Coloring Pages, a test to be a Jr. Fire Marshal among other things). I found this site to be particularly easy to navigate for a computer-independent child who wants to learn on her own.

4. Sparkles the Fire Safety Dog is one of my favorite programs regarding fire safety. Sparkles’ owner, Firefighter Dayna, is passionate about fire safety (just like we are!). They’re actually part of the Fire Safety Week on Sprout this year! Their site offers more activity pages, GREAT fire safety videos and crafts.

These are just some great online resources for you, as a parent, to help your children understand the importance of fire safety. As a parent you need to know these things as well. First and foremost, know your house’s floor plan and make a fire escape plan should an emergency occur. Teach things as simple as “stop, drop and roll” and the importance of getting low should the hallway be filled with smoke. As you help your child navigate the online resources for learning about fire safety, make sure you’re up-to-date on all of your knowledge. Your family’s lives depend on it!

Tomorrow I will have a review of some younger child storybooks that also highlight some fire safety points. Be sure to tune in all week as I bring you various tips, fun pictures and other pertinent facts on fire safety. (Also, as this is October and Halloween is just around the corner, check out our review of the best firefighter costume on the market right now, pictured above.)